7. Another sort is foolish talk, that hath not wit enough to make it edifying, Eph. v. 4. And among idle talkers how much of it is foolish! How weary would it make a man to hear the talk of many babblers! How insipid is it! How sottish! Like the talk of a mad-man, or a drunken man, or a man in his sleep: it is far pleasanter not only to hear a bird chirp, but a swine grunt, than to hear much of their discourse. See Prov. x. 14; xii. 11; xxviii. 19; 1 Pet. ii. 15; Prov. xv. 2, 14.
The aggravations of it.
Direct. II. Understand also the aggravations of idle words; which of them are the greatest sins, that they may be most carefully avoided. Though all idle words are sins, yet all are not equally sinful: the worst are such as these that follow.
1. When idle words are frequent, multiplied, and made their common talk and custom: which is the case of some men, but of abundance of loquacious women; whose natural disposition inclineth them thereto. One that hath but little wit, and much self-conceitedness, and passion, will have a torrent of words for a drop of sense.[530] If they meet but with a person so patient and idle as to give them the hearing, they will sit a whole hour together with you, yea, many hours, to tell you first how the affairs go between them and their husbands, or children, or servants; and then talk of their cattle, house, or land; and then tell you of news, and enter into a long discourse of other men's matters, which they neither understand nor have any thing to do with: and next they talk of the weather; and then of the market, what is cheap and what is dear; and then they tell you what this body said to them, and what the other body said; and then they tell you a story of the old times, and how the world is changed, and how much better the former times were than these: then they tell you what wrong such a one did them, and what he said of them, and how bad this or that man is, and what they said or did amiss; and what the report of the country is of such and such: then they tell you what clothes such a one wears, and how fine and gallant such a one is, and who keepeth a good house, and who is niggardly and sparing: then they tell you what meat was at such and such a table or feast; and if they be at meat, they have something to say about every dish, and every sort of meat or drink; especially news takes up much of their discourse.[531] And it is well if in all this, the sermon of the preacher, or his prayer, or his life, be not brought in to fill up the empty places of the discourse; and it may be the king and his council, and his laws, and his doings, shall be defiled by these parrots' unreverend prattlings, as well as meaner things and persons: so that, as Theophrastus saith, he that would not fall into a fever, let him run from them in all the haste he can. I should rather think it would cast one into the scurvy, if weariness be so great a symptom of it as they say. He that hath nothing to do in this world, nor any thing to do for the world to come; and that hath no use for his time, or wit, or tongue, or hands, but waketh as he sleepeth, and liveth as he must lie when he is dead; he that hath neither master, work, nor wages, but thinks he is made to see leaves wag, or hear flies buzz; let him choose such a companion, and let him sit and hear such people chat. For my part, I can easilier endure to have them call me morose, or proud, or uncivil, or any thing; nay, I had rather be digging, or ploughing, or ridding kennels, than endure the tediousness of their discourses.[532] Dionysius sent one to be put to death, for finding fault with his poetry; but called him again to try him once more; and the man rose up in the midst of his recitation, saying, Come, let me go to the gibbet, as choosing to die rather than to be so wearied. I am not so impatient; but I should be glad if I could sleep well while I am tied to such company. And if I had one to send to school that were sick of the talking evil, the morbus loquendi, I would give (as Isocrates required) a double pay to the schoolmaster willingly, one part for teaching him to hold his tongue, and the other half for teaching him to speak. I should think many such men and women half cured, if they were half as weary of speaking as I am of hearing them. He that lets such twattling swallows build in his chimney, may look to have his pottage savour of their dung. Nay, though they may have some learning and goodness to season their discourse, their too much loquacity will make one's stomach turn against it; and the surfeit may make some queazy stomachs distaste even the more wholesome food. Pompey was so weary of Tully's talkativeness, that he wished he had been on Cæsar's side, for then he would have feared me, (saith he,) whereas now his familiarity wearieth me.
Omne supervacuum pleno de pectore manat.
2. It is an aggravation of the sin of loquacity and idle talk, when it is done in a proud, self-conceitedness of your own wit, with an unmannerly contempt of others. This is the case of abundance that have not the manners or patience to stay till another man hath done his speech. They think others so long that their list will not hold till they come to the end. Yea, many pretended learned men and disputants have this disease, that without any shame, or respect to order, or their own reputation, they are in such haste to answer, and talk themselves, that they cut off the speech of others in the midst, as if they should say, Hold your tongue, and let me speak that am wiser. And their excuse is, You are so long that I shall forget half before you come to the end. But if it be in a disputation or about great matters, it is usually much more to the advantage of the truth and hearers, to speak all that necessarily must be considered together, in a continued speech: for the parts of truth have such a dependence one upon another, like the members of a body, or the wheels of a watch, that they are not understood disjunctly, half the sense of them being respective to the other parts. Therefore to deliver it (in such cases) by fragments, and chopping of words, and frequent interruptions one of another, is to chat or contend, and not to open the truth with the clearness and gravity which it requireth. These, therefore, that accuse others of speaking too long, to excuse their uncivil interruptions, may take their answer from Augustine, Absit ut multiloquium deputem quando necessaria dicuntur, quantalibet sermonum multitudine ars prolixitate dicantur. The huge volumes of Augustine, Chrysostom, Suarez, Calvin, yea, Tostatus himself, are seldom accused of idle words. If you depute to each their equal share of time, a composed discourse is fitter and spareth time better, than interrupting altercations and exchange of words; and if your memory cannot hold all that is said, either take notes, or crave the help of some repetition, or answer the part which you do remember.
3. Idle talk is worst when it is about holy things, and tendeth to profane them: when men unreverently babble about the Scriptures, or controversies of religion; or when by fluent tongues men design the increase of some faction, or propagating of some error, or the setting forth their parts. Saith Hierom, (ad Nepot.) Verba volvere et apud imperitum vulgus admirationem sui facere, indoctorum hominum est: nihil tam facile quam vilem plebem et indoctam, volubilitate linguæ decipere, quæ quicquid non intelligit, plus miratur. Profane loquacity is the worst kind of loquacity.
4. Idle words are the greater sin when they are magnified and justified, and taken to be lawful, if not some excellent thing. As some unhappy scholars that spend whole days and months about some trivial, unnecessary studies, while Christ, the wisdom of God, (or the subject of divine philosophy,) is neglected:[533] he that heareth some of their supposed critical curiosities, would say with Paul, "The Lord knoweth the thoughts of the wise that they are vain," 1 Cor. iii. 20. And if he compare their lives with their studies, perhaps he will remember, "They became vain in their imaginations; their foolish hearts were darkened, and professing themselves wise, they became fools," Rom. i. 21.
5. Idle words are an aggravated sin, when they are studied, and pompously set forth at great labour and cost, as a matter to be gloried in; as in plays and romances: worse than tobacco-houses where men sell smoke. The pleasure, the love, the labour, the cost, the time, the deceit, the temptation, the impenitency, are the great aggravations of this sin.
The sinfulness of much idle talk.